Western Kenya counties will get the bulk of the 5,000 teachers set to be recruited next month as the government raced to address a shortage of tutors in secondary schools.

A schedule by the Teachers Service Commission(TSC) showed that the region will fill 1,746 of the teaching vacancies — an equivalent of 35 percent of the pie.

“Applications for posts in secondary schools must be a holder of a minimum of diploma in education and should apply to the boards of management of the schools where a vacancy has been advertised and submit an application to the TSC county director,” Nancy Macharia, chief executive of the TSC said in a call for applications.

Kakamega has the highest number of slots be filled nationwide with some 278 teachers marked for recruitment. Other counties that will get big numbers include Bungoma (242), Nakuru (223), Kisii(221) and Makueni (215). Meru and Machakos will each get 201 new teachers.

Northern Kenya counties — that have in the past few years benefited from mass recruitment of teachers to replace those displaced by terror-related violence and animosity — will, however, get the least number of slots this season.

Natural attrition, search for greener pastures, periodic transfers, and further education are some of the common causes of teacher movement.